Hooray for the South of India - a different world compared to the North! We actually ended up flying down to Kochi because getting public transport was going to consume too many days and we were in the mood for getting to laid-back Kerala!

We stayed in Fort Cochin which is the main touristy area surrounded by peaceful backwaters which were originally used to transport spices...here's a little fact: Christopher Colombus intended on journeying to Kerala in search of the black peppercorn but took a very wrong turning and that is how he bumped into USA and discovered that instead!

Kochi was and still is an important fishing town and locals still use the same fishing net contraptions that the Chinese used over 500 years ago. Kochi immediately struck us a calmer place; roads were quieter, less hassle at shops and swaying palm trees greeted you round every corner

Another major difference here compared to Northern states is the religion that dominates here. Rather than Hinduism, Christianity is more prevalent and old European churces are dotted all over rather than colourful temples. Whilst we were here we did another cooking course mainly because I wanted to learn how to cook seafood Indian style. Maria and George ran the course and they were so friendly and really knew their stuff!

Once we'd roamed round cute Kochi for a few days we did a day cruise of the backwaters and also hopped on a narrow longboat sp we could go through some of the smaller waterways. It was so relaxing on the boat so we thought we'd do something similar but more luxurious in the next town of Alleppey. We booked a beautiful private houseboat with our very own chef on board and off we meandered through backwater villages, mangroves and lots and lots of ducks! On our top deck were two loungers so we pretty much all sat on them all day and watched the world go by whilst Sabash our chef served us fresh pineapple or got us a cold drink! The only time we had to get up was when lunch and tea were being served. It was the most expensive thing we have done in India but it was worth the splurge! After our overnight stay on the boat we were ready to go to our final destination of the WHOLE TRIP!.....Varkala...a beach-town!

P.S Not got photos up of houseboat yet because I have problems with my memory card...!